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Land Titles Jurisprudence · Podcast Episode 4 · 19:03
Can a Foreigner Own Land in the Philippines? Kung Nakapangalan sa Pinay na Asawa
Who may own private land under the Constitution, and what happens when a foreigner pays for land titled in someone else’s name?
A foreign husband paid for a lot and a house in Antipolo but had the property titled in his wife’s name, because he knew he could not own land. When they separated, he asked for his money back. Atty. Jeric Dave Gallardo and Sweet Zel Grace Porras walk through Article XII, Section 7 of the 1987 Constitution, three Supreme Court decisions and a twist on condominium units.
Four cases, four answers
Same question. Different facts. Different results.
The rule
Save in cases of hereditary succession, a foreigner cannot acquire private land in the Philippines, and titling the land in someone else’s name does not get around the ban.
Art. XII, Sec. 7 of the 1987 Constitution allows private lands to be transferred only to those qualified to acquire or hold lands of the public domain: Filipino citizens and corporations at least 60% Filipino-owned. Sec. 8 adds an exception for former natural-born citizens, and condominium units are governed by the Condominium Act.
Recap
- Foreigners may not acquire private lands, except by hereditary succession and under the Sec. 8 exception for former natural-born Filipinos.
- Residential lots are included, as held since Krivenko, and a foreigner who knowingly titles the land in another’s name cannot recover what he paid.
- When the foreigner himself later sells the land to a Filipino, as in Borromeo, the defect is cured and the Filipino buyer’s title is valid, while condominium units follow their own rules and limits.
Bar tip
When asked whether a foreigner who paid for land titled in his spouse’s name can get it back, remember Muller: “Not even an ownership in trust is allowed.” Then check who is asking the court for help, where the land is now, and whether it is land or a condominium unit.
The law
1987 Constitution, Article XII; 1935 Constitution, Article XIII; and the Condominium Act (R.A. No. 4726)
“Lands of the public domain are classified into agricultural, forest or timber, mineral lands and national parks. Agricultural lands of the public domain may be further classified by law according to the uses to which they may be devoted. Alienable lands of the public domain shall be limited to agricultural lands. Private corporations or associations may not hold such alienable lands of the public domain except by lease, for a period not exceeding twenty-five years, renewable for not more than twenty-five years, and not to exceed one thousand hectares in area. Citizens of the Philippines may lease not more than five hundred hectares, or acquire not more than twelve hectares thereof, by purchase, homestead, or grant.”1987 Constitution, Art. XII, Sec. 3, first paragraph
“Save in cases of hereditary succession, no private lands shall be transferred or conveyed except to individuals, corporations, or associations qualified to acquire or hold lands of the public domain.”1987 Constitution, Art. XII, Sec. 7
“Notwithstanding the provisions of Section 7 of this Article, a natural-born citizen of the Philippines who has lost his Philippine citizenship may be a transferee of private lands, subject to limitations provided by law.”1987 Constitution, Art. XII, Sec. 8
“Save in cases of hereditary succession, no private agricultural land shall be transferred or assigned except to individuals, corporations, or associations qualified to acquire or hold lands of the public domain in the Philippines.”1935 Constitution, Art. XIII, Sec. 5 (the provision applied in Krivenko)
“Any transfer or conveyance of a unit or an apartment, office or store or other space therein, shall include the transfer or conveyance of the undivided interests in the common areas or, in a proper case, the membership or shareholdings in the condominium corporation: Provided, however, That where the common areas in the condominium project are owned by the owners of separate units as co-owners thereof, no condominium unit therein shall be conveyed or transferred to persons other than Filipino citizens, or corporations at least sixty percent of the capital stock of which belong to Filipino citizens, except in cases of hereditary succession. Where the common areas in a condominium project are held by a corporation, no transfer or conveyance of a unit shall be valid if the concomitant transfer of the appurtenant membership or stockholding in the corporation will cause the alien interest in such corporation to exceed the limits imposed by existing laws.”R.A. No. 4726 (The Condominium Act), Sec. 5
1987 Constitution (LawPhil) · 1935 Constitution (LawPhil) · R.A. No. 4726, full text (LawPhil)
Chapters
- 0:00Cold open: the foreigner paid for it. Can he get his money back?
- 1:15Can a foreigner own land in the Philippines? Art. XII, Sec. 7
- 2:57Case 1: Krivenko vs. Register of Deeds (a residential lot, 1947)
- 6:07Case 2: Muller vs. Muller (titled in the wife’s name, 2006)
- 9:15Case 3: Borromeo vs. Descallar (sold to a Filipino, 2009)
- 12:46The twist: condominium units, Hulst vs. PR Builders (2007 and 2008)
- 16:20Why the different results? Three questions
- 17:32Recap and bar tip
Cases cited
Each card opens the full text of the decision, or our case digest where we have written one.
Next episode
Former Filipinos, corporations and churches: can they own land?
All 6 episodes of Land Titles Jurisprudence →
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